Palestinian cabinet convenes in Gaza in move to reconcile with Hamas

GAZA (Reuters) - Prime Minister Rami al-Hamdallah on Tuesday chaired his first meeting of the Palestinian cabinet in Gaza in a move towards reconciliation between the mainstream Fatah party and Islamist group Hamas.

Hamas seized the coastal enclave in 2007 in fighting with Fatah forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas.

The reconciliation process, which is beginning with the cabinet session, was promoted by Egypt and other U.S.-allied Arab countries.

Hamas, considered a terrorist group by Israel and the West, last month disbanded its Gaza shadow government, after Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates imposed an economic boycott on its main donor, Qatar.

(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi, Writing by Ori Lewis; editing by John Stonestreet)